Chapter 9

The wheels of my motorcycle gave a screech as I came to a halt in front of the pub. I shut the engine off and took my helmet off in one fluid motion, my eyes moving to search my perimeter. I couldn’t help but scoff at how typical the scene before me was.

A regular bad neighbourhood with old-looking buildings spray painted with graffiti art, busted-up roads, and overflowing trash cans that were also spray painted with graffiti. Shuffling came from one of the cans as a little boy dove through it and from the corner of my eye, I caught a sneaky exchange between what I believed was a drug dealer and what was obviously an addict. It was clear as day that there wasn’t much law enforcement around here and places like these were exactly what those abominations loved.

Places where they could commit their crimes without garnering the attention of the masses. Unsurprisingly, this was the same neighbourhood I’d had the encounter with the twin vamps.

There was nothing particularly odd about the neighbourhood but the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end like I was being watched, yet I couldn’t source out the position of my stalker.

Was I just being paranoid since I was back in the same town where I’d crossed paths with the royal?

Well, I had no time to dwell on whether I was being watched or not. If an enemy did indeed lurk around somewhere, then I’d simply fight them off.

My attention shifted back to my target, the place where I could get clues on Melissa’s whereabouts. It was a popular hangout spot for the abominations, a pub during the day and a club at night. It was a place where the abominations could mingle with their kind while having unlimited access to unsuspecting and hedonistic humans. The association had been trying to shut the place down for the longest time but with the current power we had, there were certain boundaries we just couldn’t afford to cross. Rumour had it that the pub was indirectly under the control of a notorious Royal vampire. Shutting it down would mean antagonizing a Royal and we currently couldn’t afford the loss that would come with that.

Already the association suffered a lack of manpower after the last encounter with one and HE had been considerably less powerful than the Royal in question. If we got on the wrong side of this royal, we could very well be wiped out. Shutting the pub down merely wasn’t worth the risk.

The pub itself was located on the ground floor of the old-looking 2-storey building that looked like it had been built at least half a century ago with a large sign that read ‘THE TAVERN’ plastered up front while the nightclub was located on the first floor.

My business today was with a demon who was simultaneously the manager of the building and an informant. With the right price, he could offer up information on almost anyone in their world and luckily for me, he did business with both humans and abominations. As much as I loathed having to do business with an abomination, I had no other choice. Desperate times called for desperate measures.

I climbed off my bike and strode towards the entrance, tugging the hood of my jacket lower to make sure it hid most of my face. There was no strict restriction on the kind of people allowed into the pub. Humans and immortals alike were allowed entry but I didn’t want to risk getting recognised and stirring an uproar. My face was quite known among the immortals these days. The last thing I needed was to get into a fight, especially now that I was so short on time.

With each minute that passed, I could feel my body changing. I didn’t know how long I had left before it all became permanent.

‘If it wasn’t already.’ I grit my teeth and shoved that thought to the side. I needed to do something quick.

Inside the pub was not nearly as rundown as the outside. It was nothing fancy but it was decent looking, with a customary bar situated to the left of the large room and a few bar stools lining its edge. Tables and chairs occupied the remaining space in the room, making it look like any old pub.

The room was fairly dark with all the windows shuttered close and I couldn’t help but wonder if that had been intentional or not. Dim, warm light emanating from bulbs on the ceiling attempted to alleviate some of the darkness but didn’t do much, giving the space an eerie, somewhat unsettling vibe.

One of the tables was occupied by a group of 4 large men that resembled a biker gang. They all wore black leather jackets with white shirts underneath. The moment I’d stepped in, they focused their attention on me, their previous conversation fading into nothing as they pinned me with their stares. I struggled to figure out if they were human or not and frankly I wasn’t curious to find out. As long as they stayed out of my way, I had no business with them.

But a nagging voice at the back of my mind told me things wouldn’t be that simple. Something about them seemed unsettling but I chose to focus my attention on the task at hand.

I found a seat at the edge of the bar, tapping my finger on the wood to get the barkeep’s attention. A greying old man clad in a white dress shirt and dark slacks soon walked over to me.

“What can I get you?” He asked with a distinct poise, his expression looking aloof yet accommodating at the same time.

“Zero.” I answered plainly, knowing he would understand what I was requesting. His wrinkled dark eyes searched my face for a moment before he responded with a nod. Soon he retreated through a door behind the bar, most likely to summon the man I had come here to see.

Hopefully, I could get the answers I was looking for and finally find the witch.

“That’s a big sword you got there, Little lady.”